NEARLY SURPRISED

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 62, Issue 307, 9 October 1942, Page 3

NEARLY SURPRISED

NIGHT ATTACK ON RUSSIANS. ENEMY MOVE AT STALINGRAD. POWERFUL COUNTER-DRIVE. (N.Z. Press Association —Copyright). (Rec. 9.30 a.m.) LONDON, Oct, 8. A Moscow message says that the Soviet troops at Stalingrad, relying on the Germans’ reluctance for night, fighting, were nearly taken by surprise when the first night attack was madesi last night. Apparently, the enemy’s aim was to break through the defencesi and gain a hold on the Volga, then wait for the main force to flood into the gap in order to strike a simultaneous blow with troops striking from souy.i, and throw back the Russians into the Volga. The attack started at 1 a.m. The Germans were -noticed gathering in a ravine and they captured several burned-out streets in the settlement. By 4 a.m. they were near the Volga with ma-chine-guns/protecting them from the north and south. The Russians saved a dangerous situation by making a powerful counterdrive! from the flank and rear.

The Germans throughout yesterday kept up the fiercest attacks, trying to capture the factory settlement. Crack Prussian troops -took part but 10 separate attacks on the settlement were rolled back with heavy losses. The official Russian report this morning says that Soviet artillery at Stalingrad inflicted losses on the enemy tanks, guns, mortars, lorries and ammunition cars.

In the Mozdok area enemy' attacks were driven off. According to a Moscow message, the Russians at Rzhev repulsed German counter-attacks made with one infantry and one tank division, both fresh troops, in an effort to cut off the Soviet troops in the outskirts of the city.